Archives for July 2015

Here at the Coffee Compass we love barista competitions and documentary films. It just so happens that Prima Coffee shares this esoteric intersection of interest. Their new documentary, The World Barista Championship – A Global Influence, takes a look at the 2015 World Barista Championship. Sure we’re biased– Prima is one of the companies that helps sponsor us — but we think this film is one of the finest examples of coffee cinema we’ve seen yet. The film is narrated by Steve Rhinehart and features interviews with a smattering of World and National champions, including James Hoffmann, Tim Wendelboe, and Laila Wilbur. Hats off to cameraman/editor Cody Maher and the rest of the Prima crew.

A few months ago we published a short post admiring our friend Brian Schiele’s Monarch Methods Kettle. Someone must have read the article, because my coworkers at Quills Coffee surprised me with one as a graduation present. I was taught to never look a gift horse in the mouth, but considering how fortunate I feel to get my hands on one of these Canadian-imports, I couldn’t help but share my thoughts about the Monarch Methods Kettle 500ml….

You know craft coffee has gone mainstream when stand-up comics are ripping on it. In Jim Gaffigan’s book Food: A Love Storyhe dedicates several pages to how his caffeine addiction led to an appreciation of specialty coffee. The result is both a well-deserved lampooning and an affectionate apologetic for boutique coffee. Here are our nine favorite zingers from the book. …

There are few things as humbling as trying to learn how to roast coffee. It might seem simple enough, but it’s a complex skill that very few people have mastered. Thankfully, coffee legend Scott Rao has finally published his magnum opus, The Coffee Roaster’s Companion. The book is the culmination of over 20 years of coffee roasting experience. Don’t be misled by the slim profile, the content is dense enough to engage a seasoned professional while the style is approachable enough for hobbyists. Over the last 9 months, I’ve read and re-read this book. Sometimes with eager curiosity, other times with frustrated desperation. The book is nicely balanced between technical theory and practical advice. Years ago, Rao’s The Professional Barista’s Handbook was formative for my barista career. The Coffee Roaster’s Companion has already proved to be as influential.

Unequivocally, if you have any interest in roasting your own coffee, you should buy this book. You may not agree with everything Rao has to say, but you will find your own opinions sharpened and informed by Rao’s careful thinking. Here are the top five things I learned from Scott Rao about coffee roasting….

2015 is turning into the year of mid-length coffee films. After sharing Cafe Imports’s new series about Ethiopia and Kávékalmár origin trip to Costa Rica, we decided to lay off the video posts- but then we stumbled upon this gem from Aarhus, Denmark’s Great Coffee. The evocative cinematography, haunting soundtrack, and compelling main character made it too good to not share. Danish coffee was long been a pacesetter for both coffee quality and café design, but Aarhus’s coffee scene has largely been eclipsed by Copenhagen, an intentional Mecca for coffee pilgrims thanks to innovative companies such as The Coffee Collective. This film centers around Søren Stiller Markussen, the founder, head roaster, and lead barista of Great Coffee. We watch as the repeat Danish barista champion roasts coffee, does yoga in Costa Rica, café crawls around Brooklyn, and even swims in the tumultuous North Sea. Kinfolk, eat your heart out.